skincare

today is #NationalWinterSkinReliefDay!

hydration. by keeping your body hydrated, your skin will naturally follow suit. if you have a hard time remembering to sip your H2O, learn to make a habit out of it by setting a reminder in your phone or using fun apps like Plant Nanny!💦

here’s a fun (& super helpful!) article on ways to trick yourself into drinking more water!

hydration, part deux. supplements like: fish oil, lecithin, probiotics, digestive enzymes (with each meal) keep your body functioning at its best & your joints all lubricated (as well as your skin!)! please don’t get your supplements at a store. buy them from a naturopath or other such practitioner…

swap out your moisturizer. use a rich, oil-based moisturizer (while skin is still damp from cleansing or from your toner) to help keep skin smooth & soft all winter long.

a good humidifier is a must! winter naturally brings low humidity, with stale, indoor air, heat in all its drying out forms, invest in a good humidifier, or several, to place throughout your house to keep moisture in your home. you will notice the difference!

sip pomegranate juice. this bright red fruit is packed with polyphenol antioxidants which not only fight free radicals but studies have shown that they may prevent cell aging.

exfoliate, exfoliate, exfoliate!!

as we mature, our skin’s natural ability to regenerate new layers of skin slows way down. manual & natural chemical exfoliation will really help not only to reveal your fresh, glowing skin, but also helps your skin absorb moisturizers & serums is much more.

one product that I use year round but especially saves my skin in the winter is my ultra protect body balm😍 this is hands down one of my favorite products!

Hawaii is set to become the 1st state in the US to actually ban the sale of sunscreens containing two types of chemicals toxic to the ocean( thank you Hawaii, but this is just now happening in 2018?! how long until all 50?) – oxybenzone & octinoxate.

they’re killing oceans around the world – the chemicals strip coral reefs of their nutrients & disrupt the development of fish & marine life.

about 14,000 tons of sunscreen lotion ends up in coral reefs around the world each year, with tourist-filled beaches, like in Hawaii & the US Virgin Islands, having the highest concentrations.

& for those of you thinking ‘well I don’t go into the ocean after applying sunscreen, so…” you’re not helping at all – when you go home & wash it off in the shower, the chemicals are sent into wastewater streams & sent to the ocean.

these chemicals are found in Hawaiian Topic, Banana Boat & Coopertone…just to name a few brands (also found in nail polish, fragrances, hair spray..yikes!)

fyi, oxybenzone is associated w/ endometriosis & has the potential to damage cells that may lead to skin cancer. both oxybenzone & octinoxate disrupt your hormones which affects reproduction in men & women & puberty…hormones control everything in your body folks!

oh! & if that’s not enough, oxybenzone is more strongly estrogenic than BPA & it was named “Allergen of the Year”! & despite the huge health risks, octinoxate remains an approved ingredient worldwide & is found in many “natural” sunscreens (are you kidding?! like it isn’t already hard enough for consumers to navigate the beauty biz.)

red wine as a health food? well, that’s not a hard sell. we’ve been told that for years!

but in the past few years, more & more people are starting to take resveratrol supplements, wine’s key health-promoting & anti-aging compound, in highly refined pill form. I’ve been formulating with this useful cosmeceutical in my skincare products for years & now I have to explain to everyone why I was using it all along! ahead of the curve…not such a great thing, man 😉

studies have shown that resveratrol has antibacterial properties, protects cells from cancer-causing mutations & helps repair the cells of the GI tract. resveratrol has been proven to absorb topically through the skin—which, as you probably recall, is our largest organ & directly absorbs all sorts of potentially beneficial or harmful compounds.

resveratrol is also a powerful antioxidant, protecting cells against the free radicals that create pigmentation spots & wrinkles over time.

but here’s the thing—sourcing always matters. when grapes are sprayed with pesticides, they get lazy & don’t produce as much resveratrol. since resveratrol is not standardized like most supplements, & the marketing of supplements is as confusing & controversial as it is in the skincare industry, it’s difficult to know exactly how much you’re getting from a grape-derived resveratrol product.

this leads us to the little-known fact that most resveratrol supplements in the United States are not made from grapes, but from Japanese Knotweed. according to Dr. Keri Marshall, Medical Director of Gaia Herbs, “not only is Japanese Knotweed more abundant from a sourcing perspective, but it is naturally concentrated to about 2-3% of the total root while a source like red wine (grape skin) is naturally concentrated to only about 0.3%.”

customers are understandably upset by what they see as false or misleading claims about sourcing…& if they notice it, the concentration of their supplements, leading many to distrust the whole natural industry. & they have a right to be pissed off!

in the 2013 case of Holt v. Reserve Life Organics, LLC., plaintiff Kathleen Holt claims the company tricked consumers into paying too much for supplements that contained very little of the promised resveratrol & used mostly nonorganic Japanese knotweed instead of organic French grapes, as claimed.

Japanese knotweed is actually a resveratrol-rich & sustainable ingredient. but claiming your resveratrol comes from grapes when it doesn’t? not cool. here at suki®, we believe in transparency: our resveratrol is sourced from two kinds of non-sprayed grapes plus non-GMO, non-irradiated Japanese knotweed.

thanks to our unique SSS actives technology, we use our resveratrol & other active ingredients in highly potent concentrations. how? because we deliver them in liposomes that penetrate safely & deeply into the derma, where these ingredients can actually create change without the VSA (Volatile Synthetic Active) irritation & inflammation caused by many synthetic actives. customers have seen the healthy-aging benefits of my resveratrol-containing products, & so can you if you check out the full line of products at sukiskincare.com.

there’s a whole world of difference between a “natural” product made to feel nice & a sophisticated scientific formula made to solve skin problems. no conventional “symptom-based” therapy will truly solve a long-term systemic problem, as those of us who have struggled with such issues know all too well L my products take the whole body into consideration, starting with the source of allergies, immune system deficiencies & systemic imbalances that cause skin problems such as acne, rosacea, eczema & more.

resveratrol is an ingredient that helps systemically solve skin problems. & for “internal use” there’s absolutely no harm in beefing up that antioxidant base with a moderate glass or two of resveratrol-rich (organic & sulfate-free!) red wine.

so cheers to your good health (& that includes a positive attitude & some well-deserved relaxation)!

know me :-)

I’m Suki, the founder, president & formulator of the brand suki® skincare. I’m also a long-time professional freelance writer & competitive pro / am ballroom dancer—this year a U.S. finalist in the Open American Smooth & Standard styles.

I started suki® because I grew up suffering physically & mentally from eczema, a condition that sent me hiding under baggy clothes in the corner while being bullied & teased. these experiences, among many others in my past, gave me the drive to create my company & the strength to become the person I am growing into. like many people who grew up, let’s say, a bit out of the norm, & are lucky enough to find “their tribe” & the help I did early on—my experience made me more competitive, compassionate & creative. I’m also motivated to give back like I’ve been given to.

the most rewarding part of my day is receiving a letter from anyone who has been helped by what I've done. I’m also so lucky to work with the amazing people at Bay Path University, Breast Cancer Action & the Komera Project.

here, I’ll always speak the truth—no BS, no fluff. I’ll answer your questions & talk...anything...uncovering the reality of labels, challenging conventional wisdom, revealing the hidden world of cosmetics from my “insider” perspective. you'll see sometimes, that much of this biz of making people pretty isn’t pretty at all. but as you'll also see, I really mean my philosophy of “know your beauty”!